"Don't let me go, Nintendo."

Let's be honest: Nintendo is their own worst enemy. Since the release of the N64, Nintendo has had a disturbing trend in dropping the ball after the first two years of their consoles' existence. Even worse, they drop off while in a stone's throw of pulling even or ahead of the competition. Every generation, I think that something may change, yet I've been disappointed for two generations straight. This time, I'm going to back Nintendo again, yet I'm going to keep my other arm grasped to some support, in case Nintendo let goes of my hand again.

The Console-So here we are... I sit with the console in front of me; sleek and white, the console stares back at me. This is probably the most attractive system I've seen this side of the Nintendo Q. Simply put, the console looks great.

The Controller-The controller is an innovation that immediately repulsed me once it was revealed. Prior to E3, I was of mind that Nintendo was out to make "the better" controller, and not turn gaming on its' head, as they expressed wishes to do. It was only after turning off my computer and going about my day that I was finally able to see the possibilities of motion controller. I quickly turned from repulsion to nervous optimism to excitement. Now that I've gotten some quality time with the controller finally, I'm excited about certain modes of control, like with Wii Sports, and scared of FPS control. I'm certain that RPGs will become a lot more interactive in the future, but I'm less that certain that certain other genres will come out in better shape. Particularly, visualizing a 2D fighting game with motion control doesn't elicit a gasp of joy from me, neither does much of anything on a 2D plane, but I'm more-than-willing to be surprised. On the upside, Zelda's quality transition to motion control has won me over quite a bit.

The Games-If Nintendo plays Wii like they do with DS, it'll be a 10. If Nintendo runs the show like they have with Gamecube and N64, I'm ready to be disappointed all over again.

The Virtual Console-I have so many hopes for the VC that it became THE reason for me to wait in the cold on launch day for the system. For the first time, I can play classic games again without the guilt or discomfort of ROMs and without the risk of e-Baying some of these games and finding out that they don't work. The coolness of the Virtual Console controller is another selling point.

I'm going to give the system a 9- for its potential, and I'm going to hope that Nintendo does for the Wii what it's doing for the DS.